Today’s youth are tomorrow’s leaders.
Equip them with positive leadership skills!

Why “Real Deal?”

When we speak of leadership, we often talk about position. We see people in positions of leadership directing groups toward a common goal. However, it is our belief that leadership is not so much a position as a state of character. Being a leader is more about who you are than what you do. Since everyone leads someone, learning to be an effective leader is not really an option but more of a responsibility. Conversely, we are all followers to someone, so when we learn to recognize good leadership, we learn how and whom to follow. 

The aim of Real Deal Leadership, written by teens for teens, is to encourage and challenge young people to develop positive leadership skills through asking tough questions, studying the Bible, prayer, and reliance on God.  

SU Sportz and Durham Christian High School teamed up and created this leadership program to help current adult leaders equip teams of youth to be tomorrow’s leaders. 
The program package includes:

• A 9-week program teaching basic leadership skills applicable at church, school, home, work and the greater community. 
• Membership access to the Real Deal website for ongoing updated reference material and curriculum.
• A 12-session video series produced by MakeYouThink® TV ($280 value).  The MakeYouThink video series is designed to stimulate discussion of issues that can be difficult for adults to address with today’s youth.

Real Deal Leadership is sponsored in part by the Toronto Argonauts.  MakeYouThink® TV has made their DVDs available for use within our curriculum.

How do teens help write the curriculum?

Durham Christian High School
Durham Christian High School in Bowmanville, Ontario, has been serving families and students for over 40 years and is on the forefront of innovative leadership education.  They have established their own in-school leadership course involving grade 11 and 12 students who meet regularly with leaders in a variety of occupations such as law enforcement, business, media, and sports entertainment to learn first-hand what it takes to be a leader in today's society. The students in this course have helped develop the Real Deal Leadership Program, and will continue to contribute towards the curriculum.  Durham Christian's teachers teach from a Biblical worldview and challenge their students to become critical thinkers who ask the tough questions and seek to make a difference for Christ in their areas of influence. Check out dchs.com or call (905) 623-5940 for info on their programs.

Now what?

‘What's next? Where do I go from here?’  These are questions teens are asking, and they need help finding the answers!  Real Deal Leadership program will give them opportunity to identify and seriously consider questions such as:

What are you passionate about?
What really gets you emotionally charged?
What types of situations make you angry or cry?
As you look back over your life so far, what events stand out as the “best times?

The answers to these will help to identify their passions, which are an integral part of being a great leader.

But vision is just as important as passion. Effective leaders communicate their vision. They see “down the road” and empower those of like mind around them to reach higher and finish stronger. Each youth can begin to discover their areas of strength and a vision for the future through answering questions such as:

In which areas has God gifted you?
What has he placed in you to do?
What's next?

We read in Scripture, “Where there is no vision the people perish.” (Proverbs 29:18)  It is essential for leaders to look forward, to see what things can be, and lead by passionately sharing their vision. 

Are you ready to equip your team?

Contact SU Sportz for more information:  play@susportz.com or 905.427.5844